Salford approves viability payment to English Cities Fund

A request from English Cities Fund, a joint venture between Muse, Legal & General and Homes England, for a £4.7m payment to support the construction of its 23-storey Stanley Street residential project has been approved by the council.

It is understood the contribution was needed in order to offset the £3.3m required to make public realm improvements surrounding the 211-apartment project, and ensure the joint venture recoups the 15% return on development costs it is entitled to under the terms of an Overarching Development Agreement.

The amount will be drawn from the council’s Development Trust Account, which was set up in 2006 to lock in the value created from projects within the Salford Central masterplan.

Overage generated from individual schemes is saved in the account, to later support less viable projects where necessary.

Salford City Mayor Paul Dennett said: “The regeneration of Salford continues and the site on Stanley Street features an impressive £3.3m of public realm improvements.

“The land used to be a surface car park but it is now being converted into homes with units available for businesses to create jobs in the area.

“This year the council has presented a budget that offers no further cuts to the vital services we provide to the public. It is thanks to our own financial management and growth, with projects like this at Stanley Street, that we have been able to cushion the impact of further cuts to our budget on residents.”

The project team on Stanley Street includes HawkinsBrown, Buro Four, WSP, Hannan and Arup. Work is expected to start on site in March.

The agents are JLL and Cushman & Wakefield.

Muse was contacted for comment.

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